Serbia welcomes return of war criminal Mladic’s body with military honours
News Source
•Thu, 03 Sep 2026 19:27:34 +0000
📰 What Happened
The body of Ratko Mladic, the Bosnian Serb commander convicted of genocide, has returned to Belgrade for burial. His coffin, draped in the Serbian flag, flew home on a government plane from The Hague. Soldiers carried it off the plane, joined by his son Darko and the justice minister. Pro-government media said a military commemoration is set for Saturday and the funeral on Monday.
Mladic died last week in a UN detention centre at age 84. He was serving a life sentence for crimes from the 1992 to 1995 war in Bosnia. The UN court confirmed his remains were handed to his family on Thursday afternoon.
🔍 The Backstory
Mladic led Bosnian Serb forces during the Bosnian war and was convicted in 2017 of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. He is most known for the Srebrenica massacre, where about 8,000 Muslim men and boys were killed. Many people called him the Butcher of Bosnia.
He spent years hiding before police arrested him in 2011. The UN tribunal in The Hague was set up to handle war crimes from the former Yugoslavia. In Serbia, some people still honour him as a general, which angers the families of his victims.
🎯 Why It Matters
How a country honours a convicted war criminal sends a strong message. Honouring Mladic reopens deep wounds for his victims' families and strains Serbia's ties with its neighbours.
The body of Ratko Mladic, the Bosnian Serb commander convicted of genocide, has returned to Belgrade for burial. His coffin, draped in the Serbian flag, flew home on a government plane from The Hague. Soldiers carried it off the plane, joined by his son Darko and the justice minister. Pro-government media said a military commemoration is set for Saturday and the funeral on Monday.
Mladic died last week in a UN detention centre at age 84. He was serving a life sentence for crimes from the 1992 to 1995 war in Bosnia. The UN court confirmed his remains were handed to his family on Thursday afternoon.
Mladic led Bosnian Serb forces during the Bosnian war and was convicted in 2017 of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. He is most known for the Srebrenica massacre, where about 8,000 Muslim men and boys were killed. Many people called him the Butcher of Bosnia.
He spent years hiding before police arrested him in 2011. The UN tribunal in The Hague was set up to handle war crimes from the former Yugoslavia. In Serbia, some people still honour him as a general, which angers the families of his victims.
How a country honours a convicted war criminal sends a strong message. Honouring Mladic reopens deep wounds for his victims' families and strains Serbia's ties with its neighbours.